Confirming rumours from earlier in the week, fan favourite “The Axe Murderer” Wanderlei Silva has announced that he will take on judo ace Yoshihiro Akiyama in the main event of UFC 111, which will emanate from the Acer Arena in Sydney, Australia on February 21, 2010.

The fight will headline the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s first event in Australia as the promotion looks to continue its expansion around the world. Both fighters will look to put on a show for the fans, but Silva desperately needs an impressive victory in order to return to contention.

Silva (32-10-1, 1 NC) dropped a contested Unanimous Decision – in a fight that he and many fans still maintain that he won – to former UFC Middleweight Champion Rich “Ace” Franklin at UFC 99 in Germany this past June. He has won just once in his last six fights and a victory over Akiyama is crucial, to say the least, for the former long-time PRIDE Middleweight Champion.

Akiyama (13-1-0, 2 NC) won his UFC debut against Alan Belcher at UFC 100. It was the first time in Akiyama’s career that he had gone the distance, though it is highly unlikely that the fight with Silva will make it to the scorecards.

Other fights for the debut Australian card are expected to be announced in the coming weeks.